• Changing Trends in the B2B Buyer Journey

    Changing Trends in the B2B Buyer Journey

    If you’re noticing that B2B buyer behavior is becoming harder to keep up with, you’re not alone. Buyers are under pressure to move fast, but they also can’t afford to make the wrong call. Reports from G2, Gartner, TrustRadius, 6sense, and McKinsey all highlight the same trend: B2B buyers want safe choices they can feel confident about, tools that help align their teams and buying experiences that don’t slow them down.

    Here’s a breakdown of the latest shifts in buyer behavior and what marketers can do to make it easier for buyers to say yes.

    What Buyers Want Now

    1. Awareness isn’t optional

    If buyers don’t know who you are, you’re not even in the running. TrustRadius reports that 78% of buyers only consider vendors they’re already aware of. For enterprise buyers, that number jumps to 86%. Awareness remains the unavoidable starting line. Without it, you won’t have the necessary foundation of trust buyers need before they’ll even consider your brand.

    2. Buyers want control but they also want clarity

    Gartner reports 75% of buyers prefer a rep-free experience. But when they go fully self-service, purchase regret skyrockets. Hybrid experiences (think self-guided demos backed by accessible support specialists) lead to better outcomes and higher quality deals.

    3. The buyer journey is messy and multidimensional

    With an average of 11 stakeholders involved in each B2B purchase, decisions rarely rest with a single advocate. The journey isn’t linear and buyers tend to revisit key stages multiple times as they make sure everyone on their team is caught up to speed. What they need now isn‘t a hard sell, it’s proof points, shareable resources and content that helps teams validate decisions and align internally.

    4. Search and peer voices are doing more of the heavy lifting

    TrustRadius reports that 93% of buyers start with search, and many prioritize peer reviews and community input over brand-owned channels. If your customers aren’t telling your story, your story isn’t reaching the buyers who need to hear it.

    5. AI isn’t just for show

    Buyers have come to expect the ROI benefits of AI, but you’re not going to sell them on it just because it’s cutting-edge tech. B2B buyers are looking to invest in AI functionality that’s tied to clear gains. Show them how AI helps them move faster, work smarter and deliver results, and over two thirds of buyers say they’ll pay more for it.

    What This Means for Marketing Teams

    1. Build for brand, demand and proof

    Brand building and demand generation aren’t separate strategies. They need to work together. Awareness and trust put you on the shortlist, but proof points get you across the finish line. Your campaigns need to build recognition and credibility while also delivering clear value buyers can see and demonstrate to their team.

    2. AI for Analysis, Humans for Connection

    AI should help you personalize messaging, analyze behavior and surface insights at scale. Let AI handle the data crunching so your team can focus on creative that actually connects with buyers.

    3. Plan for paths, not funnels

    Buyers aren’t moving neatly from awareness to consideration to purchase – they’re bouncing between education, validation, internal alignment and back again before making decisions. Build your content strategy to match the reality of how buyers move: make it modular, snackable, and easy to share across stakeholder teams. Bonus points for interactive tools that help buyers build internal business cases.

    4. Treat credibility like a channel

    Customer stories, reviews and community voices should live alongside your product pages and campaigns. Make it easy for buyers to find credible proof that helps them feel confident saying yes.

    The Bottom Line

    Buyer expectations have changed. The strategies that worked three years ago – linear funnels, volume-first content and treating brand and demand separately – aren’t built for today’s cautious, collaborative buyers who want clear, low-risk paths forward.

    They’re looking for safe choices, credible resources and proof that your solutions will deliver. By combining brand and demand, using AI with intention and prioritizing trust, you can meet buyers where they are and guide them through complex decisions.

    Need a partner to bring this strategy to life? Our team is here to help.

    Get in touch.

    Wyatt Craig

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  • Why Most B2B Emails Miss the Mark

    Why Most B2B Emails Miss the Mark

    You’ve seen them.

    You’ve probably sent them.

    Those marketing emails that talk at you, not to you.

    Despite all the tools we have, too many brands still send email blasts that ignore context, intent, and buying stage.

    The fix? Lean into the power of your CRM and the data it holds. When you combine firmographics with real-time activity data, personalization becomes more than a buzzword.

    It becomes your best-performing strategy.

    Personalized Email Strategies That Convert

    Firmographic Personalization

    Start with the basics. Company name. Company size. Revenue. These attributes shape pain-points, buying committees, and product needs.

    Use personalization tokens to reference company details or elevate your approach with smart content that dynamically adjusts messaging based on firmographic list segments.

    For example, if you’re targeting startups — think companies with fewer than 50 employees and under $10M in revenue — your messaging should reflect speed and simplicity. Something like:

    “We help small teams move fast with onboarding that takes 15 minutes or less.”

    Behavioral & Activity-Based Personalization

    This is where you stop guessing and start meeting leads exactly where they are.

    When you personalize based on what someone is doing, not just who they are, you can meet them at the exact moment they’re ready to engage.

    • Use Lead Stage as a Behavioral Signal – Match your message to where leads are in your funnel. Someone who just became a Marketing Qualified Leads (MQL) doesn’t need the same content as someone moving into Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) territory. Use lifecycle changes as a trigger to shift your message accordingly.
    • Act on Page-Level Engagement – If someone is repeatedly visiting a pricing or product page, it’s a clear sign they’re evaluating. That’s your moment to share content that moves them closer to a decision. A well-timed follow-up might sound like: “Still exploring [Product]? Here’s how a team like yours implemented it in 30 days.”
    • Trigger Real-Time Follow-Ups Based on Engagement Patterns – Move beyond fixed email cadences. Use automation to send relevant follow-ups based on real-time actions:
      • Pricing page view → one-hour delay → email with FAQs and a pricing breakdown
      • Guide download → two-day delay → webinar invite on the same topic
    Geographic Personalization

    Location adds another layer of relevance. It can influence when you send emails, what content you share, and how personal that outreach feels.

    Use time-zone based sends to make sure your message lands during their workday, not yours.

    If you’re hosting a regional event or tradeshow, use location data to invite the right people in-market:

    “We’re coming to Chicago next month. Want to meet our team?”

    Industry-Specific Personalization

    Your leads want to feel understood. Speaking their language and solving their industry-specific challenges helps build trust from the first touch.

    Smart content lets you swap in use cases that reflect their world. And your CTAs and visuals should do the same.

    Generic phrases like “See how we help companies like yours” can fall flat. Instead, speak directly to the pain points that matter:

    “Reduce compliance risk with audit-ready documentation.”
    “Scale user onboarding without scaling headcount.”

    Source- or Referral-Based Personalization

    Where someone found you tells you a lot about what they’re looking for and how to follow up.

    Someone who came from paid social might just be starting to explore a topic. In that case, meet them with content that builds curiosity and adds context:

    “Thanks for checking out our post. Here’s a deeper dive into that trend.”

    Meanwhile, a lead from organic search is likely looking for an answer or solution. That’s your opportunity to guide them:

    “Navigating [Challenge]? This guide outlines what to do next.”

    Match the tone, format, and CTA to the referral source, and your message will feel like a natural next step.

    Post-Purchase & Cross-Sell Personalization

    For the times when you can’t get ahead of it, sometimes you need to do some damage control. Following a crisis, controversy, lawsuit or regulatory issue, executives need to rebuild trust, project accountability, and speak with empathy and authority. 

    Interested in learning more or ready to get a media training on the books for your company? Learn more about Matter’s Media Training Services.

    Personalization that Performs

    Relevance + Timing + Context = Conversion

    Use this formula and your leads won’t just notice your message – they’ll act on it.

    And when you combine CRM segmentation with automation platforms like HubSpot, you can create a feeling of 1:1 communication at scale.

    If you’re looking to turn your CRM into a revenue-driving machine, let’s work together to build a personalization strategy that actually converts.

    Alexandra Enayat

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  • Should Your PR Program Sell Logic or Emotion?

    Should Your PR Program Sell Logic or Emotion?

    Logical:Emotional as B2B:B2C

    Think about the last time you bought something – maybe your morning coffee, a refill on dish soap or your favorite midday snack. If you’re like most consumers, you likely purchased out of force of habit. These habits are driven familiarity, convenience and fulfillment of a basic human emotion whether hunger, desire or status. When you reached for that item, you likely didn’t put thought into ROI or consider the competitive set of products available from other brands. Most likely, your buying decision was somewhat instantaneous.

    Now try to recall a time when you made a business purchase – perhaps a new technology to automate day-to-day operations, an emerging platform that could save your company money or time, or both. Decisions to purchase for a business typically require consensus, a review of competitors and evidence of projected ROI. The journey to making a B2B buying decision starts with deliberately identifying a pain point or means to increase profitability. From there, you seek out solutions and, ultimately, select a technology or company to deliver value to your organization. While there may be some room for emotional appeal in a B2B sale, logic is the trump card.  

    Core elements of successful PR are universal – storytelling, usage of multiple channels, measurement, etc.- but effective B2B and B2C PR must appeal to the unique ways you buy at home and at work.

    Define the buyer

    In a B2B setting, a buyer might be identified based on industry, job title/function, the size of the company or geography. Once this has been determined, your PR program should be 100% focused on reaching that target buyer.

    For B2C, the process of naming the buyer can be more difficult. This is especially true for mainstream consumer goods with the potential to be used by a wide set of demographics. Typically, factors like age, income level, gender, education and location help shape the buyer persona. With products that appeal to a broad swath of shoppers, creating variations on key messages by channel becomes imperative.

    Establish messaging

    The best storytelling – whether for a B2B or B2C buyer – will always have some level of emotional appeal. Even a deep tech B2B customer story works best with an affecting payoff at the end. New tech means a data center employee gets weekends back, disaster averted during storm, etc. That said, the core message for B2B should concern itself with ROI. It should reassure a potential buyer your business is dependable, secure and armed to solve pain points.

    Consumer messaging should be simple and appeal to more basic human needs. The need can be as simple as the need to eat or as complicated as the need to be viewed as cool, trendy or important. Because the buying process is typically less time-intensive, messaging must accommodate a shorter attention span and lack of appetite for details. Keep your brand promise simple and repeat it often.

    Select channels and content

    All buyers are influenced by social networks, media, word-of-mouth and online reviews. The spheres of influence that matter most differ between B2B and B2C so your content and influencer strategy should reflect this.

    For a makeup brand, taking advantage of a visual channel like Instagram and beauty influencers that reach millions there will push product to your core buyer. That same visual platform won’t sell security software for healthcare organizations.

    Oftentimes, there can be a temptation to “be everywhere” in PR and social. Resist the urge and make sure the channels you select have the ability to drive or influence sales.

    Measure results by actions

    Regardless of the audience, a solid PR program must effectively quantify impact. To do this, decide from the onset how you’ll know if your efforts are working. For a B2C social campaign, look at KPIs like engagement, video views, referral traffic or fulfilment of an offer code. KPIs are often entirely different for B2B and focus on whitepaper downloads, webinar signups, blog traffic or attendance at a user event.

    The difference between B2B and B2C PR comes down to the target buyer and how they purchase. Make sure you understand that person and what drives them. Next, find out where they consume media and content, and craft your programs accordingly.

    Matter

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  • Do LinkedIn’s New Profile Updates Matter for Brands & B2B Marketing?

    Do LinkedIn’s New Profile Updates Matter for Brands & B2B Marketing?

    By now, you’ve likely noticed things are changing on LinkedIn – big time. This is the largest update for the platform since its initial launch. Navigation is more streamlined, the search bar has been optimized, you’re receiving personalized suggestions to make your profile stand out, and more. These changes are designed to make the platform easier to use, and more attractive to the average user.

    Don’t write this off as just a little profile redesign – this major change from LinkedIn has real implications for brands. It has the potential to impact how you plan B2B social media campaigns, and here’s why:

    This Is a Power Play to Attract More Active Users

    These updates go far beyond prettying things up, this is a calculated move by LinkedIn to engage users and get them to return to the site much more frequently. This redesign solved many of the complaints users had about LinkedIn, including the major challenge that it was difficult to navigate. Now, as WIRED notes, the new LinkedIn looks a lot like Facebook – and that’s a smart move. Facebook has over 1,870 million active users, so it’s safe to assume most people know their way around the platform, and may now feel more comfortable using LinkedIn. LinkedIn also updated its newsfeed, adding trending topics and in-line messaging. These new features are all designed to keep users coming back and checking in regularly, something that LinkedIn has struggled with for years, falling behind more popular sites like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

    Why does this matter for brands? The simple answer is that there’s real potential that people are going to start using LinkedIn more often. That means there could soon be a much larger pool of people to reach on LinkedIn with your B2B marketing efforts. Previously, it often made sense to run paid social campaigns on Facebook instead of LinkedIn, for the (rational) reasoning that business decision makers are more consistently active there. Now, it might be time to pause, and reconsider LinkedIn. We’ll see what this year holds, but LinkedIn is hoping its active user numbers won’t be stagnant for much longer.

    New Opportunities to Showcase Your Brand and Company Thought Leadership

    Another major update from LinkedIn is a new and improved career page – which directly puts the spotlight on your brand’s company culture and leadership team. LinkedIn’s “Life” tab in particular is a compelling new addition. Through photos, videos, employee testimonials, company leader profiles and more, it’s easier than ever to paint the picture of what your brand represents and showcase that to the world. Good for hiring purposes, and great for brand reputation building.

    The new career page has other implications as well – especially for brands and agencies focusing on thought leadership, and diligently working to place opinion pieces from top executives. Thought leadership from executives can now be featured directly on your brand’s profile, via the “Life” tab. In addition to LinkedIn Pulse, this is a great way to get your brand’s voice out there, build brand reputation and get more eyes on the initiatives you’re working on. If your brand’s executives are active on LinkedIn and open to working with you to pen key thought leadership pieces or work on employee profiles, the time is now.

    2017 is shaping up to be a big year for LinkedIn! How are you enjoying the new profile set-up so far – does it inspire you to visit the site more often?

    Matter

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